{{Short description|Family of birds}} {{about|the family of birds|the helmet|frog-mouth helm}} {{Automatic taxobox | name = Frogmouths | parent_authority = Matthews, 1918 | display_parents = 2 | taxon = Podargidae | image = Philippine frogmouth (Batrachostomus septimus septimus) female and male Bohol.jpg | image_caption = Philippine frogmouth<br>''Batrachostomus septimus'' female and male | authority = Gray, 1847 | subdivision_ranks = Genera | subdivision = * ''Batrachostomus'' * ''Podargus'' * ''Rigidipenna'' }} [[File:CeylonFrogMouth.jpg|thumb|Ceylon frogmouths in the Western Ghats]] The '''frogmouths''' ('''Podargidae''') are a group of nocturnal birds related to owlet-nightjars, swifts, and hummingbirds. Species in the group are distributed in the Indomalayan and Australasian realms.
==Biology== They are named for their large flattened hooked bill and huge frog-like gape, which they use to capture insects. The three ''Podargus'' species are large frogmouths restricted to Australia and New Guinea, that have massive flat broad bills. They are known to take larger prey, such as small vertebrates (frogs, mice, etc.), which are sometimes beaten against a stone before swallowing.<ref name=Perrins>{{cite book| last = Perrins| first = Christopher| title = Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds| publisher = Firefly Books| year = 2003| page = [https://archive.org/details/fireflyencyclope0000unse/page/342 342]| isbn = 1-55297-777-3| url-access = registration| url = https://archive.org/details/fireflyencyclope0000unse/page/342}}</ref> The ten ''Batrachostomus'' frogmouths are found in tropical Asia. They have smaller, more rounded bills and are predominantly insectivorous. Both ''Podargus'' and ''Batrachostomus'' have bristles around the base of the bill, and ''Batrachostomus'' has other, longer bristles which may exist to protect the eyes from insect prey.<ref name=Perrins/> In April 2007, a new species of frogmouth was described from the Solomon Islands and placed in a newly established genus, ''Rigidipenna''.<ref name = "CLEERE">{{cite journal | last1 = Cleere | display-authors = etal | year = 2007 | title = A new genus of frogmouth (Podargidae) from the Solomon Islands – results from a taxonomic review of ''Podargus ocellatus inexpectatus'' Hartert 1901 | journal = Ibis | volume = 149 | issue = 2 | pages = 271–286 | doi=10.1111/j.1474-919x.2006.00626.x}}</ref>
Their flight is weak. They rest horizontally on branches during the day, camouflaged by their cryptic plumage. Through convergent evolution as night hunters, they resemble owls, with large front-facing eyes.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}
Up to three white eggs are laid in the fork of a branch, and are incubated by the female at night and the male in the day.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}
==Taxonomy== DNA-DNA hybridisation studies had suggested that the two frogmouth groups may not be as closely related as previously thought, and that the Asian species may be separable as a new family, the Batrachostomidae.<ref name = "Sibley"/><ref name = "Mayr" /> Although frogmouths were formerly included in the order Caprimulgiformes, a 2019 study estimated the divergence between ''Podargus'' and ''Batrachostomus'' to between 30 and 50 mya and forming a clade well separated from the nightjars and being a sister group of the swifts, hummingbirds, and owlet-nightjars. The name '''Podargiformes''' proposed in 1918 by Gregory Mathews was reinstated for the clade.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.3390/d11090143 |doi-access=free |title=Total-Evidence Framework Reveals Complex Morphological Evolution in Nightbirds (Strisores) |year=2019 |last1=Chen |first1=Albert |last2=White |first2=Noor D. |last3=Benson |first3=Roger B.J. |last4=Braun |first4=Michael J. |last5=Field |first5=Daniel J. |journal=Diversity |volume=11 |issue=9 |page=143 }}</ref>
===Species=== thumb|right|A pair of tawny frogmouths resting in a tree fork during the day * Genus ''Podargus'' :* Tawny frogmouth, ''Podargus strigoides'' :* Marbled frogmouth, ''Podargus ocellatus'' :* Papuan frogmouth, ''Podargus papuensis''
* Genus ''Batrachostomus'' :* Large frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus auritus'' :* Dulit frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus harterti'' :* Philippine frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus septimus'' :* Gould's frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus stellatus'' :* Sri Lanka frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus moniliger'' :* Hodgson's frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus hodgsoni'' :* Sumatran frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus poliolophus'' :* Javan frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus javensis'' :* Blyth's frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus affinis'' :* Sunda frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus cornutus'' :* Palawan frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus chaseni'' :* Bornean frogmouth, ''Batrachostomus mixtus''
* Genus ''Rigidipenna'' :* Solomons frogmouth, ''Rigidipenna inexpectata''
== In culture == In a journal article published in April 2021, researchers Katja Thömmes and Gregor Hayn-Leichsenring from the Experimental Aesthetics group at the University Hospital Jena, Germany, found the frogmouth to be the most "instagrammable" type of bird.<ref name = "iperception">{{Cite journal |last1=Thömmes |first1=Katja |last2=Hayn-Leichsenring |first2=Gregor |date=2021-03-01 |title=What Instagram Can Teach Us About Bird Photography: The Most Photogenic Bird and Color Preferences|journal=i-Perception |language=en |volume=12 |issue=2 |article-number=20416695211003585 |doi=10.1177/20416695211003585 |pmid=33996019 | pmc=8073730 |issn=2041-6695 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Using an algorithm to analyze the aesthetic appeal of more than 27,000 bird photographs on Instagram, they found that photos depicting frogmouths received the highest number of likes relative to the posts' exposure to users. The journal article was picked up by several news outlets, including ''The New York Times'' and ''The Guardian''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Waller |first=Allyson |date=2021-04-29 |title=This 'Angry' Bird Is the Most Photogenic, Research Finds |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/science/instagrammable-bird-frogmouth.html |access-date=2021-04-30 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
==Summary of extant species== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! width="15%"|Common name ! width="15%"|Binomial name ! data-sort-type="number" width="15%"|Population ! width="5%"|Status ! width="5%"|Trend ! class="unsortable"|Notes ! class="unsortable"|Image |- |'''Large frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus auritus'' |unknown<ref name="B. auritus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus auritus''|article-number=e.T22689591A224168266|last=BirdLife International|year=2023|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T22689591A224168266.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-VU}}<ref name="B. auritus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B. auritus IUCN"/> |Although population is unknown, species is listed as Vulnerable due to rapid deforestation across its known range.<ref name="B. auritus IUCN"/> |175px |- |'''Gould's frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus stellatus'' |unknown<ref name="B.stellatus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus stellatus''|article-number=e.T22689600A203594116|last=BirdLife International|year=2021|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22689600A203594116.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-NT}}<ref name="B.stellatus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B.stellatus IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Solomons frogmouth''' |''Rigidipenna inexpectata'' |'''1,500 - 7,000'''<ref name="R.inexpectata IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Rigidipenna inexpectata''|article-number=e.T22734967A219284897|last=BirdLife International|year=2023|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T22734967A219284897.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-NT}}<ref name="R.inexpectata IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="R.inexpectata IUCN" /> |Estimate given is for population of mature individuals. Total population is estimated to be 2,500-9,999 individuals.<ref name="R.inexpectata IUCN" /> |175px |- |'''Sunda frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus cornutus'' |unknown<ref name="B.cornutus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus cornutus''|article-number=e.T22689630A280901655|last=BirdLife International|year=2025|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-2.RLTS.T22689630A280901655.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B.cornutus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B.cornutus IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Dulit frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus harterti'' |unknown<ref name="B.harterti IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus harterti''|article-number=e.T22689594A231311672|last=BirdLife International|year=2023|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T22689594A231311672.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B.harterti IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B.harterti IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Hodgson's frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus hodgsoni'' |unknown<ref name="B.hodgsoni IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus hodgsoni''|article-number=e.T22689607A130166556|last=BirdLife International|year=2018|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22689607A130166556.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B.hodgsoni IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B.hodgsoni IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Javan frogmouth''' (Horsfield's frogmouth) |''Batrachostomus javensis'' |unknown<ref name="B. javensis IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus javensis''|article-number=e.T22727987A263956185|last=BirdLife International|year=2024|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T22727987A263956185.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B. javensis IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B. javensis IUCN"/> |The IOC splits two additional species, Blyth's frogmouth (''B. affinis'') and Palawan frogmouth (''B. chaseni'') from this species.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nightjars, Oilbird, potoos, frogmouths – IOC World Bird List |url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/nightjars/ |access-date=2026-03-11 |website=www.worldbirdnames.org}}</ref> IUCN/BirdLife International maintain all three species under ''B. javaensis''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=BirdLife International |url=https://datazone.birdlife.org/about-our-science/taxonomy#birdlife-s-taxonomic-checklist |title=Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International Digital Checklist of the Birds of the World: Version 10 |date=2025}}</ref> |175px |- |'''Bornean frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus mixtus'' |unknown<ref name="B. mixtus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus mixtus''|article-number=e.T22689613A220964885|last=BirdLife International|year=2023|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T22689613A220964885.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B. mixtus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B. mixtus IUCN"/> | | |- |'''Sri Lanka frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus moniliger'' |unknown<ref name="B.moniliger IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus moniliger''|article-number=e.T22689603A263677860|last=BirdLife International|year=2024|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22689603/263677860}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B.moniliger IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{steady}}<ref name="B.moniliger IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Sumatran frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus poliolophus'' |'''> 10,000'''<ref name="B.poliolophus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus poliolophus''|article-number=e.T22689610A224133663|last=BirdLife International|year=2023|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22689610/224133663}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B.poliolophus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B.poliolophus IUCN"/> |Population value given is a very rough estimate, extrapolated from the large availability of suitable habitat on Sumatra.<ref name="B.poliolophus IUCN"/> |175px |- |'''Philippine frogmouth''' |''Batrachostomus septimus'' |unknown<ref name="B. septimus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Batrachostomus septimus''|article-number=e.T22689597A264065596|last=BirdLife International|year=2024|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T22689597A264065596.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="B. septimus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="B. septimus IUCN"/> | |175px |- |'''Marbled frogmouth''' |''Podargus ocellatus'' |unknown<ref name="P.ocellatus IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Podargus ocellatus''|article-number=e.T22736125A263966847|last=BirdLife International|year=2024|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T22736125A263966847.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="P.ocellatus IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="P.ocellatus IUCN" /> | |175px |- |'''Papuan frogmouth''' |''Podargus papuensis'' |unknown<ref name="P.papuensis IUCN">{{Cite IUCN|title=''Podargus papuensis''|article-number=e.T22689583A264070237|last=BirdLife International|year=2024|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T22689583A264070237.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="P.papuensis IUCN"/> | align="center" |{{decrease}}<ref name="P.papuensis IUCN" /> | |175px |- |'''Tawny frogmouth''' |''Podargus strigoides'' |unknown<ref name="P. strigoides IUCN">{{cite iucn| author=BirdLife International |title=''Podargus strigoides'' |date=2024 |article-number=e.T22689580A253969296 |doi= 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T22689580A253969296.en}}</ref> |{{IUCN-LC}}<ref name="P. strigoides IUCN"/> |align="center"|{{steady}}<ref name="P. strigoides IUCN"/> | |175px |}
==References== {{Reflist | refs = <ref name = "Mayr">{{cite journal | last1 = Mayr | first1 = G | year = 2002 | title = Osteological evidence for paraphyly of the avian order Caprimulgiformes (nightjars and allies) | journal = Journal für Ornithologie | volume = 143 | issue = 1 | pages = 82–97 | issn = 0021-8375 | url = http://www.senckenberg.de/files/content/forschung/abteilung/terrzool/ornithologie/caprimulgiformes.pdf | doi=10.1007/bf02465461| s2cid = 42119957 }}</ref> <ref name = "Sibley">{{cite journal | first1 = Charles G. | last1 = Sibley | first2 = John E. | last2 = Alquist | first3 = Burt L. | last3 = Monroe Jr. | title = A Classification of the Living Birds of the World Based on Dna-Dna Hybridization Studies | journal = The Auk | volume = 105 | issue = 3 | date = July 1988 | pages = 409–423 | doi = 10.1093/auk/105.3.409 | jstor = 4087435 | url = https://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/auk/v105n03/p0409-p0423.pdf}}</ref> }}
==External links== {{Commons category|Podargidae}} {{Wikispecies|Podargidae}} *[http://ibc.lynxeds.com/family/frogmouths-podargidae Frogmouth videos] on the Internet Bird Collection *{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120422231559/http://www.ironammonite.com/2009/11/video-frogmouth.html Video: Finding the Sri-Lanka Frogmouth, Southern India]}} *[http://www.physorg.com/news96218125.html Scientists discover new genus of frogmouth bird in Solomon Islands]
{{Strisores|A.|state=collapsed}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q788536}} {{Authority control}}
* * Category:Nocturnal animals